Nippleglove



Dec. 25, 1962 s. c. v. SEHRWALD 3,070,249

- NIPPLEGLOVE {51 I I .I I

Q FIG.6

FIG. 2 INVENTOR.

SIGRID 01v SEHRWALD United States Patent ()fitice 3,070,249 NIPPLEGLGVEI Sigrid C. V. semen-a, 1439 4th Ave,

San Francisco, Calif. Filed Nov. 30, 196i Ser. No. 72,825 1' (Ilaim. (Q.215-11) This invention pertains to child nursing equipment, and moreparticularly tonipples comprising an improved nursing, unit generallyd'escribed and shown in US. Patent 2,753,067, by Rodrequez, for NurserCombination. V

The invention is directed to the prevention of maloc clusions whichdevelop during early infancy. After many years of sincere research,medical dental physicians have come to the conclusions thatinadequatechild nursing equipment is a major cause which contributes to the de- 1I participates actively in the nursing act. All muscles of the face arein motion and the mandible is brought forward for every milking stroke.During bottle feeding the child remains more or less passive. The milkis poured into the child by an even fiow. In cases Where the hole of thenipple has been enlarged too much, the child is liable to be drowned inhis own milk supply. It is also observed that in the case of such forcedfeeding the child develops protective tongue habits and such abnormalswallowing habits contribute also to malocclusions of the young face.The mouthpiece of the conventional nipple provides neither stimulatingsupport for the lips of the child nor normal nursing activity. Thisresults from the shape of the conventional nipple being too long, narrowand firm.

In an attempt to improve the conventional nipple form W. Balters andMueller of Waldbroel, West Germany, have invented a nipple which isasymmetrical in design. The mouthpiece of this nipple is fiat having abulge to fit into the anterior palate of the childs mouth. If properlyused this nipple may not only prevent the development of malocclusionsbut it may also correct many malformations of a childs jaws. Theincorrect use of this nipple is easily adopted and is harmful. Thatmeans the child has to be watched closely during nursing from theBalters nipple. Also this nipple collapses frequently during usage andtherefore requires adjusting. Leakage from the bottle is common.

Experimentation has shown that the American standard nursing unit, onthe other hand, creates severe discomfort to the child. The lips of thechild are quite frequently pinched whenever caught at the junctionbetween nipple and screw top.

enerally this invention provides a nursing unit which in its functionalcapacity, is more related to natural physiology. The invention pertainsto an accessory, designed especially to be fitted over the standardAmerican nursing unit. One of its purposes is to protect the lips of thechild from being pinched in the area where conventional nipple and thescrew top are joined. Additional advantages include interruption of theeven flow of milk from the conventional nipple, directing the milk intothe space created between this invention and the conventional nipple.From here the milk is released only during and according to functionalnursing activity of the child. The accessory is formed according to theshape of the mothers nipple and therefore provides support for the lipsof the 3,070,249 Patented Dec. 25, 1982 2 child.- Experimentations haveshown that the invention provides the possibility for the child tonursenormally and actively as in nursing from the mothers breast.

An object of this invention isalso to prevent collapse of the nipple andleakage from the bottle. v p Another object ofthis invention is to limitthe necessity for close supervision of the child during nursing,.and toprovide a nursing unit which can be secured firmly to enable the childto turn to or from its milk supply accord i'ng to its demand fornourishment. I a

These and other objectives of the present invention will be understoodfrom the following description taken with reference to the attacheddrawing in which:

FIGURE 1 is an elevational view of a'soft nipple cover in accordancewith this invention;

FIGURE 2 is a diagrammatic cross sectional view of an improved nursingunit in accordance with this invenn; V FIGURE 3 is an elevational Viewof a standard European type nipple; v V V p I I I FIGURE 4 is a frontelevational view of an improved nipple of the recent prior art by W.Balters and Mueller;

"FIGURE 5 is a side elevational view of the nipple wn tF G- ;a

FIGURE 6 is an elevational view of a standard American nursing unit. I vc FIGURE 1 shows a cover in accordance with this invention. Here themouthpiece 11, in the form of a central hemispheric bulge is short androunded to simulate the lactating human nipple. The body 12, is largeand simulates the body of the mothers breast. The cover fits with itsbase 13, snug about the screw top 70. The internal annular rib M, isdeep enough to hook under the lower border of the screw top 70, to holdthe sleeve securely to the bottle and to provide a good milk sealgasket. The sleeve terminates with a membrane like structure 15, toembrace the bottle firmly.

Referring to materials used: The sleeve 10, is made of a suitableflexible material such as rubber, plastic, etc. For its manufacture,dipping or pressing are equally satisfactory processes.

The nursing combination as shown in FIGURE 2, includes the sleeve 10,the nipple 60, the screw top 70, and the bottle 2%. The use of thesleeve 10, with the American standard nursing unit, provides severalimportant advantages: (1) The sleeve 10 covers area A, therebyprotecting the lips of the child from being pinched or caught betweenthe nipple 6t) and the screw top 70. (2) By fitting the sleeve 10' overthe conventional nipple 60, a space C is created. The sleeve 10interrupts the even flow of milk from the conventional nipple 6t), anddirects the milk into the space C. The latter acts a small secondarymilk reservoir, releasing the milk supply only during nursing activity,and so permitting the child to voluntarily control its feeding rate. (3)The combination of sleeve 10 and conventional nipple 60, together withthe created space C, provide a cushioned body which soothes, supportsand stimulates the lips of the child, (4) The sleeve 10 does notcollapse during usage since the con' veutional nipple serves as aninternal support. (5) Leakage from this improved nursing unit 2 isnearly impossible due to combined security from: (a) nipple 60 plusscrew top 70, which carry the main pressure from the milk column in thebottle 20, and (b) because the sleeve 10 fits snug with its area 13, 14,15 over part and 21. (6) The sleeve 10 is flexible enough to adjustitself according to the shape of the childs mouth, in this way the smalldiameter and the excessive firmness of the conventional nipple 60 isremoved, and for the'same reason the present invention 10 tends also tominimize the excessive swallowing of air.

Referring to FIGURE 3, the basic design of the nipple which is mostwidely used in Europe is shown. This nipple is fitted directly over theneck of the bottle, without the aid of a screw top., Therefore, leakageis a common problem. The mouthpiece 31 of the nipple is also long andnarrow and therefore limits normal nursing activity.

Referring to FIGURES 4 and 5, a more recent develop ment in nipple isshown. In this case, the mouthpiece 41 is short and fiat having a bulge56, to fit the anterior palate of the childs mouth. The body 42 ispronounced, and terminates with a roll 44 to fit the neck of the bottle.

As seen in FIGURE 6, the Standard American nursing unit is comprised ofa nipple 60, a screw top 70 and a bottle 20. The area where nipple 60and screw top 70 are joined is marked as A, and indicates the placewhere the lips of the child are caught and pinched. The nipple 60 isanchored with its base 63 beneath the roof 71 of the screw top 70. Thescrew top 70 is supported by the neck of the bottle 21. The screw top70, which secures the nipple 13 to the bottle 20 has a centered opening,through which the mouthpiece of the nipple 60 emerges. The screw top 70is usually of plastic and is hard and cold to the touch of the child'slips. On the basic design of the nipple 60, which is most commonly usedin America, the mouthpiece 61 is long and narrow. Such form limitsnatural nursing activity and is thought to be injurious, causingmalformation of the childs face.

Practical experimentations have shown that the invention 10 fills a longstanding request for improvement of child nursing equipment. The nursingcombination, FIG. 2, simulates in form, construction and function thephysiology of normal and natural breast nursing. Therefore, theexpectations linked to the usage of this invention are not only greatercomfort for the artificially nursed child; but also, it can be hopedthat this improved nursing unit will limit the number of developingmalocclusions and will prevent malformations of the childs face. Theusage of this invention is simple and practical, it can not cause harm.

I claim:

A nursing unit comprising a generally cylindrically shaped bottle havingan opening at one end thereof, a first flexible nipple, annular shapedcap means for removably holding the first nipple over the opening of thebottle, a second flexible nipple overlying said first nipple and thecap, said second nipple including a generally cylindrical portion and agenerally rounded end portion having a hemispheric bulge, thecylindrical portion of the second nipple including an internal annularrib, said rib being seated on the outer surface of said cap in sealingrelationship, the cylindrical portion of said second nipple alsoincluding a skirt extending from said annular rib, the edge of saidskirt firmly embracing the bottle, and liquid passage means in each ofsaid nipples whereby liquid is discharged through each of the nipplesduring nursing.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,018,831 Ladley Feb. 27, 1912 2,483,979 Morrill Oct. 4, 1949 FOREIGNPATENTS 464,652 Italy July 19, 1951 1,049,079 France Aug. 12, 1953

